13th European Soccer Championship

On Saturday June 7 , the thirteenth edition of the European championship opens in Austria and Switzerland.

It was originally called the European Cup of Nations, created in 1960 by Henri Delaunay. Only four countries competed in the first tournament

The trophy was made in 1960 by Arthur Bertrand and cost around 20,000 French francs. It is made in silver and now is worth 22,500 euro. It weights 8 kilos and measures 42cm. But the winners are not entitled to keep the real trophy which is the property of the UEFA. They just received a replica.

The tournament has historically been dominated by Germany with three victories. France has won it twice. But it has also thrown up some big surprises. Greece won the last tournament in Portugal in 2004 and Denmark won in 1992

Some of the great names of soccer have made their reputations here like Zidane, Van Basten, Nedved, Figo, Chevtchenko, Yachine, Owen, Sammer, and Platini.